MoPh Markets

European Equities Down as UK Inflation Climbs: Morning Roundup

European equities have opened slightly lower on Wednesday after UK inflation rate climbs to 10.4%, ahead of the 9.9% consensus. The FTSE 100 is down 0.31% as investors await a heavy week of rate decisions from the Fed and the BoE.

In the UK, the latest stock news sees Fevertree and Hostelworld announce preliminary results, whilst Superdry has signed an agreement with Cowell and Sainsbury’s shares were upgraded.

Fevertree

Fevertree announced its preliminary results to 31 December. The group reported on a strong top line performance but industry wide inflationary pressures which impacted the group’s gross margin. “The Group has delivered a strong sales performance with double digit revenue growth underpinned by a very encouraging 18% average growth across the US, Europe and Rest of the World” – Tim Warrillow, Co-Founder and CEO.

  • Total revenue grew 11% to £344.3m, driven by a 23% growth in US revenue.
  • Adjusted EBITDA declined 37% to £39.7m.
  • Fevertree remains confident in delivering growth and are reiterating its guidance range of £390m – £405m.

Superdry

Superdry have announced on Friday it has signed an IP Transfer Agreement with Cowell Fashion Company, a listed company based in South Korea for the sale of Superdry’s intellectual property assets in certain countries within Asia Pacific.

  • The agreement sees an upfront fee of $50m, payable in cash.
  • The deal will see Cowell own and use the Superdry brand within the APAC markets.
  • Superdry plans to build a collaborative partnership with Cowell to captilise on the shift in consumer preferences in Asia.

Sainsbury’s

  • Sainsbury’s shares were upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Exane BNP Paribas.
  • The group also kept a 300p price target on its shares.
  • Sainsbury’s shares gained 4% and is up 0.2% so far this morning.

Hostelworld

Hostelworld reported its preliminary results for the year ended 31 December, which saw a return to profitable adjusted EBITDA and a strong recovery in demand as travel resumed and the omicron impact receded. “2022 was the year in which Hostelworld demonstrated the resilience of its business model and the capacity to capitalise on market demand as it returned,” – Gary Morrison, CEO.

  • Full year net bookings totalled 4.8m, an increase of 228% year-on-year.
  • Net revenue for the period of €69.7m, up 312% YoY.
  • Adjusted EBITDA profit of €1.3m against a loss of €17.3m in the prior year.

Leave a Reply